What
the heck is going on here? Who are these Hasbro designers and where have they
been for the past fifteen years? Seriously, it's been almost an eternity since
we've gotten some really cool, really well designed vehicles, and now all of
a sudden we're getting such amazing stuff back to back to back. I'm primarilly
a figure collector when it comes to Joe...that's always been my first love.
But man...over the past few months I'm find a whole lot more pleasure in the
new vehicles than the new figures...not badmouthing the figures at all, but
these rolling tanks are just way too cool for words, and every one of them seems
a step above the last. First the Night Ops HUMVEE, then the H.I.S.S., then the
R.O.C.C., and finally, the R.H.I.N.O., quite simply the pinnacle of achievement
in the new sculpt vehicle category, bar none. The best.

Design and Playability

First of all,
I can't really say the design itself is revolutionary, just because you can
tell that it borrows quite a bit from the famous Aliens movie that came out
(and further revolutionized science fiction/action movies as we know them),
but to see it actually crafted in plastic form is just bad ass. But even though
this Joe toy borrows very heavily from the Aliens design, it seems able to add
its own elements and really become it's own unique identity. The sharp, angled
corners and sloped body armor are a major departure from the Hasbro vehicles
of recent memory, and it really works well here. From the two flip up canopies
in front to the mini spoiler in back, and all of the opening doors in between,
the R.H.I.N.O. has style, substance, and power in spades.

It's streamlined
front works very well, even with the two canopies and the built-in helicopter.
The design and workings of the sloped armor fit in perfectly and look a lot
like the mini jet within the R.O.C.C. which immediately tie the two vehicles
together. Details abound on the R.H.I.N.O. as well, from small molded machine
guns near the front, to the multi-layered armor, and well-concealed battle doors.

Doors, you say?
Oh, yeah, the R.H.I.N.O. is filled with opening doors, compartments, and troop
storage areas that enable you to fit a whopping twelve troops comfortably inside.
It's amazing that a vehicle as streamlined as this has the troop carrying capabilities
that it does. The carrier section of the R.H.I.N.O. is somewhat cramped, but
it is surprisingly detailed, with a little seat and computer console in one
area, and three nicely molded seats on the other side. Those seats lead out
to a side door, very similar to the one on the right side, which is closed off.
All of this intricate detail is quite impressive, also considering the mini-copter
that ejects from the inside as well.

Another nice little touch of playability is the "surprise attack door" on the right side, too. The door is closed off from the troop carrier, but there is a button on the bottom that flashes a platform out and has troops standing there ready to attack. A very cool little feature, and something that Hasbro did not have to put on there, but did, just to give it a little more play value. Very cool.

Speaking of
the mini-copter, how cool is this thing? Hasbro designed the R.H.I.N.O. copter
so that it would slowly lift up out of the central cavity of the vehicle, with
the hinged wings folding out, and it is a very cool sight to behold. It's not
quite as solid and smooth as I would like, but that's a very minor complaint
when it comes to the overall coolness of the feature, the helicopter, and the
R.H.I.N.O. APC itself. The mini copter surprisingly seats two, and has a little
clip on adapter (which will not fit on the copter, while it's inside) that serves
as the twin laser guns and also lets you clip on a few of the changable weapons.
I was really surprised at not only how roomy the cockpit was (it easily fits
two new sculpt figures), but it's also amazingly well detailed. Two control
sticks, nice stickers for monitors, and some cool little trimming...it's a fantastic
little helicopter!

These changable
weapons also reek of coolness. From twin machine guns to gatling guns to nasty
looking missile launchers, all of the assorted weapons and gear that hook onto
the armored hide of the R.H.I.N.O. look incredible and are nicely multi-faceted.
I'm already trying to work out the best configuration for this vehicle and for
the R.O.C.C., but the options are nearly limitless and I love this feature.

No doubt about
it in my mind, design and playability are two major strong points of this vehicle...it
is beautiful.

Does it look
like the Alien APC? Oh, sure. But it still looks like a G.I. Joe vehicle as
well and works almost seamlessly in the G.I. Joe universe. I can just see the
Joes pounding this thing into a squad of BATS, tearing them up, and then deploying
their strike force from within, blasting their way out. If a simple vehicle
can instill that kind of imagination immediately, you know it's something potentially
cool.

There are a
couple of small hiccups that do interrupt playability slightly. Those two missile
launchers on top look really neat and really powerful, but they get in the way
of hatch opening and helicopter deployment. One of the box pics has them mounted
on the rear, but then they block one of the hatches in back which doesn't seem
especially functional either. According to the Hasbro instructions, they should
be mounted in the center, on top (but the beauty of these weapons is you can
put them wherever you darn well want to) but feel free to experiment!

In spite of
minor glitches like that, this armored behemoth is a powerhouse and a great
addition to your G.I. Joe motor pool.

Figure
and Accessories

The figure is
a mixed bag. Part Barrel Roll, part Switch Gears, and part a modified Valor
Vs. Venom Heavy Duty the figure is a pretty cobbled together one, but honestly,
I still like it. I can't really explain why...perhaps it's because I love Barrel
Roll's mold so much, or that the slight modifications to Heavy Duty's head really
makes him look like a completely different character. Whatever the reasons are,
I kind of dig Cannonball, a lot more than I thought I would.

His colors immediately
looked off to me when I saw him at the convention this past summer...but in
person the white and yellow don't look quite so bad at all. They do clash with
the R.H.I.N.O.'s colors pretty strongly, but they still look nice and the figure
is different, which is much appreciated. I like his characterization on the
filecard, too, and overall, he's a suitable driver even if he isn't a really
impressive figure.

There is some
debate currently about whether or not Cannonball's head is, in fact, a simple
repaint of Heavy Duty. I'd say definitely not...there are clearly some modifications
from what I can tell, although it most likely did start out as Heavy Duty. While
the bandana sculpt itself is remarkably similar on the back, the faces are clearly
different:

Perhaps it's
the plastic used, or the molded flesh rather than painted, but Cannonball DOES
look pretty different, at least to me, which is cool, and which makes him a
more unique character.

Final Comments

What more can
you ask for? A powerful, impressive looking vehicle that holds a dozen troops,
has a nice looking helicopter built in, is loaded with weapons, and comes with
a pretty cool figure. This vehicle is definitely worth the price of admission,
and I highly, HIGHLY recommend picking it up...it is very much worth it.

Hasbro has been
hitting home run after home run after home run with their vehicles lately...it
makes me very excited to see what's down the pike. It'll be very hard to top
the last few items we've seen, but I can't wait to see them try!